Starting a Home Based Community

When we began homeschooling, our local homeschooling community in South Carolina was very small, with most families belonging to either a nationally organized group or a community that centered on providing social interaction. The few home schoolers I met who were interested in Charlotte Mason’s philosophy and methods were, like me, fairly new to homeschooling and unsure how to form a community of like-minded parents and children.

So we began on a very small scale. One or two families would come over to our house, and we would do a nature study on a flower or tree in our backyard. I provided watercolor paint, a brush and a small piece of watercolor paper. We followed the nature study process that I had learned at the CMI conference five years previous. Another mother would offer a 15-20 minute piano lesson for my children. The third mother would read a short selection in “Among the Farmyard People,” and the children would take turns narrating it. It was very simple and easy to do, and several years later, each one of our children still remember the stories they read and the plants they studied on these days. There is something about this community, whether you are a child or a parent, that makes these indelible memories that are lovely and special. And we should remember that these times of fellowship and cooperation are as important to the parents as they are to the children.

The very easiest way to create a Mason community is with your friends. Take turns meeting in someone’s home. Decide on a day to meet at the park or a museum and do a casual nature study or picture study. Start simply. No one really needs to own the Handbook of Nature Study to do a nature study. Choose the simplest flower in your yard; I can guarantee you will learn something new about it. Hang a hummingbird feeder, catch butterflies or pick up a dead cicada. Rotate responsibilities such as reading or singing.

If after your studies, you can provide the children time for masterly inactivity, you will have the opportunity to fellowship with other parents. Chances are, you, your friend and your children will find this so rewarding that your group will grow to a few more than two families.

Some Suggestions for a Home Based Community

Take turns meeting in different homes; bi-weekly seems to be a good frequency

Make it casual and comfortable

Start with simple activities

Rotate responsibilities and focus on what are parent's gifts (one may be a piano player, an artist, a great storyteller/reader, organizing games, etc)

Plan picnic lunches

Sing songs, like folk songs, traditional children's songs and hymns

Encourage children to bring or describe "discoveries" they made the past week, especially nature discoveries

Meet at local parks, arboretums or nature preserves for a long nature walk

Provide time for masterly inactivity

Fellowship with other parents

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